Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, established on October 25th, 1958, is bordered by Inner Mongolia to the north and west, Shaanxi to the east and Gansu to the south. The region is mostly mountains and plains with little truly fertile land.The Chinese Moslems, the Huis, make up 1/3 of the population of the region.

Around 1000 AD, the Tangut kingdom of Western Xia was centered in Ningxia, and often in conflict with the Song, Liao, and Jin dynasties. In 189 years the throne changed hands ten times. Eventually it was overrun by the Mongols and absorbed into the Chinese empire of its day. Marco Polo visited it at around that time.